Gates on Bridleways- hacking difficulties

[McNally]

Am i right in thinking they have to be easy to open on board a horse?

I am disappointed in the riding where i have moved our horses to. We are down a quiet lane and if we go right we get to bridleways which seem nice enough but the gates are awful and are every 5/10 minutes (at a walk!) The first one i can open on the floor by pulling with both hands and using all my weight, no way i can do it one handed off my horse the spring to too strong. All the gates are difficult.
If we go left we come out into a very busy village which is a tourist trap so come winter/bad weather will be quiet enough but at the minute its very very busy and for some reason our 2 quietish horses are being crazilly nappy going that way so we have only ventured just past the end of the lane as i ride with my daughter and her young pony- Not worth the risk of him napping and maybe getting away with it on a busier road.

so since moving to my lovely new yard i have been unable to ride that much :-(
Also whats the best way to deal with napping? want to nip that in the bud quickly before it becomes a real problem- as i say pony and daughter fairly young so dont want issues!

 

[springer1021]

Contact the Rights of Way Officer at your County Council and they should be able to help.

 

[DragonSlayer]

I'm not sure there is any legislation as to what a gate should be like, just that you can get through it maybe.....others might be more knowledgeable on that score....! We have to get off and open the ones over the railway, and out on the Wolds when we box up to go there, some investment HAS been made to put those long-handled gates on....but not all are like that, one....we find a new piece of rope wrapped firmly round each time....nightmare to open, and into a busy road too!

With napping, I have found it is a case of 'keep at it'.....sitting tight and God willing....you will get over it and past whatever it is that is causing the problem, never had a REALLY bad napper, so maybe not the best to listen to over that.

If you are really disappointed with the yard because of the riding, maybe an idea to scout about this summer to see other places, and what the hacking is like there? For me, hacking is 'The Thing'.....and we are so lucky that our land edges a BP that takes you on a 12 mile loop (you can shorten it alot if you want) as it links with the Viking Way and goes up to an old abbey.....

Lot's of people don't like the fact my place has no electric, but over the years we have had it, we now have small paddocks, a shelter, a stable for emergencies, feed-shed, old lorry back as a tea-room...AND most importantly, water! BUT would be VERY reluctant to move just because of the access to the rides we have.

Good luck!

 

[NeilM]

As springer says, contact your local council Rights of Way officer, also look on line to see if you have a bridleway association in your area, as lots of places do.

Local Authorities are tight for cash, but many bridleway associations will donate money or even get the work done in co-operation with and the approval of the local RoW officer.

We take our ponies on holiday to Exmoor and I have found a lot of very poor gates down there. Somerset CC have an interactive map and so when I get home, I always report the dodgy gates.

 

[McNally]

I certainly will look into that- Thank you, I thought there must be someone to contact but had no idea who.

The hacking is going to be a problem but think once we have got past the napping there are several better routes if we can get through the village.
I cant swap yards as this is land we have taken on long term rent with view to buy and have spent a packet fencing and erecting stables etc- unfortunately all the work we did ment it was 5 months before the horses came over and we tried the riding!

The napping is a new one on me to an extent- my old horse went through stages of say napping at a certain point then once we got past was ok but this is a fight every single step and the minute either of us relax i think we would be home quicker than you could blink!
We dont have anyone to ride with at the minute (ie a horse who is familiar and happy with the routes) but am hoping i can persuade a friend to come and ride one out a few times til we get over it so its not my daughter on board!